Ashley Venon, who has worked in the Brandeis Dining Hall for the past three years, has captured the hearts of many Creighton students.
“She’s literally an angel,” Ava Welter, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, said.
Born and raised in Nebraska, Venon has faithfully served the Omaha community for over 20 years. Prior to working in Brandeis, Venon spent 13 years working in a nursing home, and five years working at a Dairy Queen that was owned by her parents.
Outside of work, Venon loves spending time with her family. She takes pride in her six nieces and nephews, all under the age of 15, and is excited for the seventh one on the way.
“I like taking care of them,” Venon said. “They call me the best ‘TT’ ever.”
Venon mentioned that she has had fun bonding with her 13-year-old nephew over Creighton basketball and has always held a special place in her heart for interacting with kids.
“I’ve always wanted to [work with kids], you know, when I grew up, I knew I loved kids,” Venon said.
Venon’s affection for young people is reflected in the relationships she builds with students. Venon shared a few of the ways that she fosters these relationships.
“I always [try to] make them smile,” Venon said. “If I [see] that they’re not smiling or they are upset I say, ‘hey what’s going on?’”
Venon also mentioned that she will sometimes sing students “Happy Birthday” or put on music for students to dance to.
Venon’s uplifting words do not go unnoticed.
“She’s just so positive every day,” Lilly Mauk, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, said.
Venon shared that one of her favorite moments at Creighton was “when I scared the kids and they laughed and giggled,” when she dressed up as Georgie the clown for Halloween.
“They loved my Halloween costume,” Venon said.
Over time, Venon has begun to view the students at Creighton as her own.
“My nephew told me the other day, he said ‘TT, why [do] you call the Creighton kids your kids [or] your babies?’ I said, ‘because [they are],’” Venon said.
This connection with the students has only deepened over time, as Venon’s affection for Creighton has grown stronger over the past three years.
“I just love the school,” Venon said. “I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”